UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, to defend their rights, and to help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.
At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate and proud of what we do. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.
UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career, while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.
Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.
For every child, a future
The Public Partnerships Division (PPD) works to strengthen UNICEF's position as a partner of choice for children's rights among governments and public actors around the world. Along with the Private Fundraising and Partnerships Division (PFP), PPD advocates for sustainable partnerships and mobilize flexible and predictable resources to achieve UNICEF's Strategic Plan results in the context of Agenda 2030.Risk management in the context of the Public Partnerships Division’s (PPD) mission is an organizational and strategic function that enables the division to anticipate, identify and mitigate risks associated with public sector funding to UNICEF, which amounted to over $6 billion in 2023. This includes providing partnerships advice around the global negotiation of framework agreements and contracts that may be valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars; supporting the division and country offices on meeting transparency obligations and best practices with public sector partners, developing partnerships policy, and coordinating crisis management response around reputational risk events.The UNICEF Legal Team in the Office of the Executive Director has exclusive accountability to provide legal advice and guidance to all business units of the organization, including PPD; the Legal Team works closely with the Stewardship and Oversight Pillar of PPD in the negotiation of, and in advising on, partnerships with the public sector and agreements setting out such partnerships.
Purpose of the job
Positioned within the Stewardship and Oversight Pillar of PPD and under the supervision of the Risk Manager, the Risk and Compliance Specialist (Partnerships) will be responsible for strengthening risk assurance and compliance efforts for the division, especially in support of contracting and negotiating with public sector partners and development and implementation of policy related to PPD’s work. It is not a legal role although the Stewardship and Oversight Pillar works closely with the Office of the Legal Counsel, and this role will interact regularly with the Legal Office. This position will also support initiatives related to overall partnerships risk management.
Key functions, accountabilities and related duties/tasks:
- Contracting and negotiations support- Coordinate and provide technical and advisory support to the Risk Manager and PPD teams on the review and negotiation of contracts with public sector donors, especially around the growing area of donor conditionalities.
- Monitor and track donor conditionalities across public sector donor portfolios and advise PPD teams and other internal stakeholders on how to respond to specific donor conditionalities in line with UNICEF policy and practice.
- Support capacity of PPD teams to engage in contract review and negotiations with partners.
2. Policy and regulatory framework support- Support in the maintenance of PPD’s regulatory content, including updates of the Resource Mobilization policy and Donor Conditions guidance.
- Manage PPD consultation and input process for organizational policy drafts that are circulated by other Divisions for PPD comment- Build capacity of PPD teams on knowledge of regulatory content and how it impacts on donor/partner agreements.
- Lead on PPD’s implementation of UNICEF’s Delegation of Authority Policy.
3. Support on Partnerships Risk Management- Conduct quality assurance and follow-up on the implementation of PPD audit recommendations, including those related to annual risk assessments.
- Review internal work processes in PPD to ensure that accountabilities are clear and placed at the adequate levels as per global policies and/or best practices. Provide support in developing systems, policies and procedures that will enforce and strengthen internal work processes.
- Coordinate PPD’s inputs and responses to external UN Board of Auditors audits and JIU requests.
- Provide backstop and supplementary support to the implementation of the Policy on Disclosure of Integrity-Related Information to Public Sector Resource Partners.
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…
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- Education: Master or equivalent (Advanced University Degree) in Law and any other related Legal fields.
- Work Experience: At least 5 years of relevant work experience in Legal, Risk Management, Compliance, Partnerships, Global Framework Agreements, Policy Development, Regulatory Framework, Public Sector Funding, Donor Conditionalities, Transparency Obligations.
- Skills: Contract Negotiations, Donor Agreements, Risk Assessment, Data Analysis, Capacity Building, Global Framework Agreements
- Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.
- Desirables
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- Language: Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, or Spanish)
- Adaptability, Problem Solving, Policy Development
- Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergencies.
For every Child, you demonstrate...
UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values
UNICEF competencies required for this post are…
(1) Builds and maintains partnerships
(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
(3) Drive to achieve results for impact
(4) Innovates and embraces change
(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity
(6) Thinks and acts strategically
(7) Works collaboratively with others
Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels
UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.
We offer a wide range of measures to include a more diverse workforce, such as paid parental leave, time off for breastfeeding purposes, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.
UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.
UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.
Remarks:
As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.
UNICEF's active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates are encouraged to apply.
Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.
UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.
Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.
All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.
Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.
